Brief:
This is a father/son dual build. Up t' this point, I've been helpin' him build his rockets. Avast, me proud beauty! We started with me doin' most o' t' building, matey, and him as an extra pair o' hands. Aye aye! Over t' course o' 3-4 builds, he's been doin' more and more, and t' roles are reversin' where I'm becomin' t' extra hands. I found a couple o' Firebirds for relatively cheap, me bucko, and so we're buildin' these in parallel. Aye aye! This will be his first purely solo build, me hearties, and we'll be comparin' t' results o' our two builds. After this, he'll be movin' on t' buildin' his L1 cert rocket... if I think he's ready.

T' Firebird is a fairly basic single stage Estes offering. Aye aye! Nothin' dramatic or fancy, arrr, here, me bucko, just a solid design with classic lines.

Construction:
Dad: This is a basic 4FNC rocket. Avast, me proud beauty! Plastic nose cone, pre-cut fins, some flimsy paper centerin' rings and t' usual too short shock cord and plastic chute. Begad! Arrr! T' body tube is a good length o' BT-55 1.325" tubing, me bucko, while t' motor tube be t' cheap blue 18mm tube. Ahoy! For standard 18mm motors, everythin' is sufficiently strong. Well, blow me down! For t' 18mm Aerotech D reloads, thar could be some extra stress that could test some o' these parts.

Son: Yeah, yeah...what he said. Ya scallywag! What's with t' wimpy 18mm motor mount? That's got t' go. Blimey! I'm goin' t' raid t' parts closet. Avast, me proud beauty! Let's see. Begad! 24mm motor mount, some BT50-55 centerin' rings t' replace t' cheapy paper stuff. OK. Begad! I'm good t' go. Aye aye! Aye aye! Let's get building.

Dad: Once again, this is pretty basic Estes fare. Begad! Anyone who's build a typical Estes rocket in t' last couple decades won't have an issue here. Ahoy! There are a couple minor changes that I make t' all Estes kits.

Namely t' recovery section.

I always toss t' 3-fold concept. Blimey! Blimey! I notched t' upper centerin' ring, ya bilge rat, and slipped a length o' Keelhaul®©™ through. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! I knotted t' end t' prevent it comin' back through t' notch, ya bilge rat, and put a dab o' epoxy t' hold it in. Normally, me bucko, I would tie t' Keelhaul®©™® in a loop around t' motor tube, ya bilge rat, but since these fins are through t' wall, me bucko, t' loop would interfere with t' fin tangs.

Speakin' o' which, shiver me timbers, I wonder why Estes went with through t' wall fins for this kit and only an 18mm mount. Arrr! For all t' Estes 18mm motors, shiver me timbers, TTW fins is way overkill. Well, blow me down! O' course, it does make fin alignment much easier.

Son: Well, he taught me, matey, shiver me timbers, so, ya bilge rat, yeah, me bucko, I'm tossin' t' 3-fold as well. Ya scallywag! Since I'm doin' t' 24mm thing, matey, I get t' choose me engine tube size, ya bilge rat, so I went with a longer tube, and a third centerin' ring. Blimey! T' first 2 rings sandwich t' fin tangs as normal. Arrr! I tied t' Keelhaul®©™® around t' motor tube, and put t' third rin' on top. Ya scallywag! Arrr! Hah! Mines stronger.

While I be at it, shiver me timbers, I cut t' top o' t' engine hook off so it doesn't go into t' motor tube. Avast! I also left off t' motor block. Arrr! T' down side is I'll need t' use tape t' make "thrust rings" on t' bottom o' Estes engines t' keep them from goin' through t' rocket. Ahoy! Blimey! T' up side is that I can use any 24mm motor includin' t' upcomin' Aerotech 24/120 and t' CTI Pro 24 cases. Bigger, faster, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, higher! I can't wait t' put a 24mm G motor and watch it rip! Dad's shakin' his head while I'm typin' this. Begad! Says I'll never get it back. Well, blow me down! Maybe, me hearties, but it's fun. Arrr! Besides, shiver me timbers, I don't pay for t' motors. Ahoy! (Dad: He may start buyin' them if he loses them like this)

Finishing:
Dad: Decals are typical o' Estes in this era. Arrr! Begad! That means peel and stick. Avast! I really don't like them. Avast, me proud beauty! I much prefer water slide. Blimey! That said, as per me usual superstitious approach, shiver me timbers, I won't actually paint and decal t' rocket until after t' first few flights. Why? Because I've found that t' odds o' me losin' a rocket increase exponentially with t' amount o' time I spend on it prior t' it's first flight. Avast! If I build a rocket in 2 hours t' night before a launch, it's comin' back. Every time I've spent 2-3 months doin' a painstakin' job o' buildin' and finishing, somethin' bad has happened.

As for t' pre-paint finish work, it's all typical. Ahoy! Blimey! Sand and seal t' fins. Avast! Sand t' flashin' off t' nose cone. Avast, me proud beauty! Ahoy! Fill t' spirals in t' tube. Ahoy! Ahoy! T' spirals actually aren't too bad, and t' tube is white. If you go with t' factory color scheme (white) you could probably get away without filling.

Son: I'm done building, matey, shiver me timbers, let's go fly. Seriously. Avast, me proud beauty! Arrr! Yeah, I could take some time t' make it look good, but this isn't one o' those rockets. Begad! Let's fly. Well, blow me down! Avast! I want t' get started on me cert rocket. I'll take more time on that one.

Construction Rating: 4 out o' 5

Flight:
Dad: For all our rockets larger than 1" diameter, we keep a supply o' Nomex t' avoid usin' wadding. Begad! Blimey! Ya scallywag! Blimey! Waddin' can be easier in t' smaller rockets, but t' larger ones just take too much. Besides, reuseable Nomex is more eco friendly.

Other prep is standard. Avast, me proud beauty! Blimey! Yes, thar's a lot o' this review that just says "it's standard issue." That's because this is a pretty standard rocket. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Steppin' into high power, many o' t' rockets are pretty "standard" as well. Ahoy! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! Just stronger materials. Avast! Blimey! Arrr! Blimey! Blimey! Blimey! At a certain point, shiver me timbers, you can't do anythin' too fancy with high power motors, matey, because t' motors will just shred t' rocket from t' high thrust.

Son: What he said. I'm gettin' tired o' typing. Aye aye! I haven't flown mine yet. Begad! Weather hasn't been good enough.

Recovery:
Dad: My turn t' say it. Avast, me proud beauty! What he said. We haven't flown either rocket yet as t' weather hasn't cooperated. Ahoy! Arrr! My expectation is that, like everythin' about this kit, it will be typical Estes. Aye aye! T' chute is too big, and it will float, so we'll probably fly with a streamer or smaller chute. Arrr! As we get a chance t' fly these, I'll be postin' t' flight logs, and updatin' t' review through t' flight log comments. Ya scallywag! Actual flight is just t' last validation o' t' build in this case. Ahoy! T' primary goal be t' give him a solo build t' validate he has t' skills necessary t' attempt his cert build.

Son: So, do I pass? When can I start on t' Matrix?

Flight Rating: 3 out o' 5

Overall Rating: 3 out o' 5